Why big brands pay a fortune for soundtracks (and why you don’t have to)

Although online sales still only represent about 10% of total retail sales, e-commerce is crushing several outdated retail sectors, freeing up vast amounts of prime commercial real estate. This floor space is getting taken over by online retailers in a bid to woo shoppers and stand out from the competition.

Because there is magic in the physical world.

The top reason customers prefer to visit a store? To see, touch, feel and try out items, according to a recent survey by Retail Dive. Shoppers might still make the ultimate purchase online. But the decision begins in-store.

A new study by the ICSC, an organization serving the global retail real estate industry, shows opening a new physical store leads to a 37 percent average gain in overall traffic to a retailer’s website and increases its share of web traffic within that market by an average of 27 percent.

“What we are seeing now is a retail renaissance as both new and established retailers are investing in their stores and reinvigorating their physical presence”

The crucial part of this retail renaissance is creating an awesome and memorable physical in-store experience. And to do that, background music is an essential element. That’s why big multinational brands spend so much money hiring music experts.

The magic is in the details. And it's also in the science.

At Soundtrack we’ve worked for a decade helping some of the world’s biggest brands with their music. We’ve boiled down all the research and insights from working with these brands into a new online tool, Create Soundtrack, which gives you the same music curation big brands get, but at a fraction of the price.

The method underpinning this tool builds not only on experience. It’s also validated by the world’s most significant field studies on music in commercial settings.

“Our method serves as a bridge between a brand’s identity and the type of music that resonates with it. As brand personality has grown to become a central part of brand building, we can assume that, just like a person, a brand can also express its identity through music.”

The tool lets you create a soundtrack in just a few clicks. You select the mood you want to create and Soundtrack does the rest. According to Doug Stephens, founder of Retail Prophet, customer experience is the future of how retailers will generate revenue.